Preview — Fairyland
by Paul J. McAuley

Fairyland

In the next century, an underground chemist meets and becomes obsessed with Milena, a child genius who is the ultimate product of gene-splicing technology. Milena is an advocate of the dolls--artificial constructs that have replaced extinct companion animals. Milena wishes to free the dolls from bondage--but in doing so, she creates an autonomous race that may be a threatIn the next century, an underground chemist meets and becomes obsessed with Milena, a child genius who is the ultimate product of gene-splicing technology. Milena is an advocate of the dolls--artificial constructs that have replaced extinct companion animals. Milena wishes to free the dolls from bondage--but in doing so, she creates an autonomous race that may be a threat to mankind....more

Community Reviews

A dark, immersive biopunk epic which is very close to being a top-tier achievement – and yet somehow, in the final third, it just kept slipping away from me faster and faster, until by the end I no longer had any firm grip on who half the characters were, or what exactly had happened to them, or why. Whether that's the book's fault or mine I'm not quite sure.

The setting is a nearish-future Europe of scientific advance and social decay, in which nanotechnology is as prominent a feature as conflicA dark, immersive biopunk epic which is very close to being a top-tier achievement – and yet somehow, in the final third, it just kept slipping away from me faster and faster, until by the end I no longer had any firm grip on who half the characters were, or what exactly had happened to them, or why. Whether that's the book's fault or mine I'm not quite sure.

The setting is a nearish-future Europe of scientific advance and social decay, in which nanotechnology is as prominent a feature as conflict refugees. At the bleeding edge of hi-tech development are the genetically engineered ‘dolls’ who are used as slave labour, as sex toys, or simply as modish pets for the super-rich. But a creepily brainy little girl genius has worked out a way to awaken the dolls' intelligence, accidentally – or perhaps not – turning them into a runaway, fast-evolving new species of ‘fairies’ that start to overrun the continent.

What this book does well, it does brilliantly. The tone is fantastically well evoked – genuinely oppressive and dark and atmospheric, so that picking the book up or putting it down can change your mood in dramatic ways. The structure, too, is excellent – split into three parts, each works almost as a standalone novella with its own new protagonist and setting. The first, in a twisted but recognisable London, is a sort of East-End rozzers-and-gangsters tale set in a world of psychoactive viruses and virtual reality. Act two, for my money the strongest section, jumps to the run-down Paris suburbs, where destitute children are being targeted by some evil that has set up camp in the ruins of Disneyland Paris. And Part Three is a frontiersy, war-is-hell story about a video reporter on the front lines of a conflict in Albania.

It's such a rich form of world-building – if perhaps very slightly too ambitious for its own good, but that is already a great problem for any book to have. In the end, the challenges of keeping these disparate storylines on target for any kind of coherent conclusion proved a bit too much to cope with, I thought, resulting in a growing sense from the reader that you're getting irredeemably lost. This is not helped by the otherwise admirably uncompromising and hard sci-fi prose style from our author, a biologist, who thinks nothing of chucking around explanations like this:

Slowly, copies of the library of fairy fembot code are written into tangled buckyball strings, which are delivered to Alex's T-lymphocytes within protein coats derived from modified HIV virus.

Even so, the hits are much more prominent than the misses here. The world of Fairyland, if often hard to understand, does feel real, and the threats feel genuinely menacing – one character, Mister Mike, filled me with dread every time he made an appearance. McAuley also has a lot of fun concocting cyberpunk updates of fairy mythology, with a ghastly Spenserian ‘fairy queen’ and a very dark reinterpretation of the old stories about fairy-folk stealing people's babies. Though ultimately a little unfulfilling, this is a book determined to hack into your cortex and show you things you've never seen anywhere else – and they are definitely worth the watch....more

Mcauley offers up a slice of what could be called biopunk treading similar ground to Difilippo’s Ribofunk, but definitely punk as opposed to funky from characters quoting Talking Heads (the appropriate “Life during Wartime”) and listening to Bad Brains, to the despairing and nihilistic tone. A near future revolution of manufactured dolls like Calder’s Dead Trilogy or Rucker’s ‘ware trilogy but with the intense characters, muscular realism, and realpolitik of Lucius Shepard. A great stylistic ranMcauley offers up a slice of what could be called biopunk treading similar ground to Difilippo’s Ribofunk, but definitely punk as opposed to funky from characters quoting Talking Heads (the appropriate “Life during Wartime”) and listening to Bad Brains, to the despairing and nihilistic tone. A near future revolution of manufactured dolls like Calder’s Dead Trilogy or Rucker’s ‘ware trilogy but with the intense characters, muscular realism, and realpolitik of Lucius Shepard. A great stylistic range with the first section being very noir, the second section a paranoid political thriller mixed with Strugatsky brother’s Roadside Picnic (horrible things happen to Eurodisney), and the third a very convincing war zone, kind of Apocalypse Now/Heart of Darkness and Lucius Shepard’s Life During Wartime (that phrase again), and that also plays with myths of the fairies. The respective settings of London, Paris, and Albania feel real as do the characters (Morag, Alex Sharkey, Katrina, and Mrs. Powell). Mcauley throws out terrifying extrapolations of technology with childish glee like Greg Egan and parodies cyberpunk tropes(web cowboys and razor girls get thrown on their heads). In fact this book manages to touch on nearly every element that could be in a near future science fiction with a potentially exhausting everything but the kitchen sink approach (computers, biology, nanotech, memes, and weapons) but Mcauley smoothly handles the narrative and it never really breaks its stride. ...more

“Fairyland” remains one of the most impressive works in post-cyberpunk fiction, conjuring a nightmarish vision of a near future Europe in which biotechnology has run amok, creating new species of humans designed for pleasure and violent sport. Paul J. McAuley’s novel is a fast-paced thriller reminiscent of William Gibson and John Shirley’s early cyberpunk novels in its pacing. Succumbing to the charm and vision of a megalomaniacA Memorable Post-Cyberpunk Novel Set in a Wasted, Near Future Europe

“Fairyland” remains one of the most impressive works in post-cyberpunk fiction, conjuring a nightmarish vision of a near future Europe in which biotechnology has run amok, creating new species of humans designed for pleasure and violent sport. Paul J. McAuley’s novel is a fast-paced thriller reminiscent of William Gibson and John Shirley’s early cyberpunk novels in its pacing. Succumbing to the charm and vision of a megalomaniac brilliant young child, Milena, genetic engineer Alex Sharkey helps unleash a dire threat to humanity’s existence, allowing “dolls” – bioengineered beings based on human DNA, designed for pleasure, slavery and wanton destruction in gladiator-like amusement games – the opportunity to think for themselves and understand the notion of free will. He will pursue these beings and other, similar, creatures across decades across a European landscape wasted by the ravages of war and poverty, searching for Milena and a means to ensure humanity’s survival. Without question, “Fairyland” is still one of Paul J. McAuley’s greatest works in fantasy and science fiction, demonstrating his great gifts in storytelling and writing....more

This is such an odd world that McAuley has created yet, as someone who was born and raised in London, it is oddly familiar too. Slightly reminiscent of the works of both Philip K Dick and Isaac Asimov through its use of robots as a metaphor for humanity, this story tells the history of how robotic slaves called Dolls rise up against their masters and create their own species, the fairies. This is both funny and dark, and manages to make feel real a story that is otherwise pure fantasy.

Fits firmly into the cyberpunk genre, with hints of Neal Stephenson influence.... However, I didn't really enjoy the 'feeling' of the book. I liked McAuley's Confluence trilogy much more than this novel.

“The man runs in a desperate zig-zag scramble, waving his arms as if trying to swat something. People scatter – they know what’s about to happen. The man has been targeted by a hornet, a small, self-powered micro-missile guided by scent to a specific target.” (p.267)

Paul McAuley’s 1995 novel Fairyland had been on my radar for a while until a laudatory tweet by author Adam Roberts convinced me to buy a copy. It is the 150th title to join Gollancz’s SF Masterworks collection. It was also the first“The man runs in a desperate zig-zag scramble, waving his arms as if trying to swat something. People scatter – they know what’s about to happen. The man has been targeted by a hornet, a small, self-powered micro-missile guided by scent to a specific target.” (p.267)

Paul McAuley’s 1995 novel Fairyland had been on my radar for a while until a laudatory tweet by author Adam Roberts convinced me to buy a copy. It is the 150th title to join Gollancz’s SF Masterworks collection. It was also the first novel published by Gollancz to win the Arthur C. Clarke Award, back in 1996. Here is the author talking about the book in an interview posted on the SF Gateway website’s blog:

“Fairyland is, I suppose, my breakout novel. It’s set in a near future fractured by political upheaval and out-of-control biotech; its story, likewise fractured, is set in real places (London, Paris, Albania).”

Fairyland’s main character is Alex Sharkey, an overweight biochemical hacker who designs tailor-made psychoactive viruses which change the way you feel and think. In a dark and grimy near-future London, Alex meets Milena, a young girl genius who needs his gene-hacking skills for a personal project she is working on. What follows is a game-changing event that could have repercussions for the entire human race.

“Milena promises Alex that she didn’t plant any subconscious commands in him, but Alex isn’t so sure. She has this urge to manipulate, to control. […] She should be walking around with a biohazard symbol tattooed on her forehead.” (p.100)

One of the most memorable characters in the book is the blue-skinned “dolls”. Smaller than humans, the dolls are artificially created clones that have been bioengineered from human DNA. Initially, they are “novelty toys of the rich”, but over time they come to be used for cheap labour “in industries where working conditions are traditionally hazardous.” Reminds me a little of the replicants in Blade Runner.

“One woman has a pet doll. It sits quietly beside its mistress, dressed in a pink and purple uniform edged with gold braid. A chain leash is clipped to the studded dog collar around its neck. Its prognathous blue-skinned face is impassive.” (p.4)

This is a fascinating story rich in atmosphere and ideas, but it requires the reader’s full attention to follow the twisting plot lines. The book is split into three parts, with the setting and time changing in each. “Biopunk”, “British cyberpunk”, and “post-cyberpunk” are labels that have been attached to Fairyland. I read it as an inventive, weird and wonderful tale of speculative fiction which conjured up memories of William Gibson’s Sprawl trilogy....more

On an elemental level this is hard science fiction, as billed, replete with detailed explanations of atomic biology that seem to do more for the author than the book he writes. Reading it, though, it feels a lot more in the vein of Thomas Harris and his Red Dragon than anything in my admittedly limited collection of sci-fi. A wholly imperfect man (okay, Paul, you don't need to mention his weight every time he meets a new character) who is both out of his depth and in possession of an incrediblyOn an elemental level this is hard science fiction, as billed, replete with detailed explanations of atomic biology that seem to do more for the author than the book he writes. Reading it, though, it feels a lot more in the vein of Thomas Harris and his Red Dragon than anything in my admittedly limited collection of sci-fi. A wholly imperfect man (okay, Paul, you don't need to mention his weight every time he meets a new character) who is both out of his depth and in possession of an incredibly rare and useful skill set, chases his elusive red dragon with the aid and hamperings of the morally corrupt.

It is both intensely compelling and chaotically jarring. Gunfights the other side of town play out immediately after long discussions on posthuman nature, with barely a line-break between them. Scenes and times change drastically and eratically, and explicit constants ("it's monsoon season," he says... the rain is never so much as hinted at again) are subverted where things that are inherently changing don't seem to make any progress at all.

Critics seem to agree this is a masterful use of language that serves to impress upon the reader how confusing and unreliable this dystopic world is, and I could agree if in places it didn't feel like blatant laziness. The lack of many transitions feel very much like an admittance the writer doesn't know how to handle them than the clever manipulation of a master craftsman.

He paints a world of people and not places--I can hardly tell the difference between America, Albania, London and the Eastern Bloc--and while this is surely a conscious reflection of a hyperconnected planet without real borders, none of the characters are compelling enough on their own, nor do they possess enough chemistry when together, for McAuley to really pull it off.

Don't expect "archetypes of fantasy" (the blurb), don't expect "hipness" (Mail on Sunday), nor "characters needy and vivid" (The Washington Post), and don't expect "a rich sense of place" (The Times). I don't feel these quotes are in any way accurate. If anything, they diminish a good read and draw attention away from the expert blend of thriller, sci-fi and adventure that will linger in the memory long after places and characters....more

I had to rate this book four stars purely because of the impressive scope and dazzling imagination of it, even though I probably only enjoyed it to a three-star degree. I'm not sure exactly why that is; I just found it a bit of a slog, particularly in the first two parts. I suppose it took me that long to figure out what was really going on—what the book was trying to do—and that made it difficult. I think it was also made a little difficult by the somewhat underdeveloped settings. The world asI had to rate this book four stars purely because of the impressive scope and dazzling imagination of it, even though I probably only enjoyed it to a three-star degree. I'm not sure exactly why that is; I just found it a bit of a slog, particularly in the first two parts. I suppose it took me that long to figure out what was really going on—what the book was trying to do—and that made it difficult. I think it was also made a little difficult by the somewhat underdeveloped settings. The world as a whole is certainly complex and richly detailed, but many of the landscapes were left rather vague, more like mirages than actual places. Overall, I get the sense the author erred on the side of under-telling rather than over-telling, and I'm sure that is probably the better of the two, although it did make it difficult to be fully immersed in the story sometimes. Definitely an interesting and compelling piece of science fiction, though....more

Fat Englishman meme hacker riding a tiny mammoth saves a race of korean bio engineered blue sex slaves from a little girl that gave them consciousness and then turned itself into a construct living in the vastness of the Net.

i mean the first two parts are really interesting with the biopunk ideas (using virus as drugs and to "hack" people minds) but the last part felt like there was not a good way to bring all together to a conclusion.

The first third of the book is great fun, full of a compelling and frightening near-future London. Given this was written in 1994-1995, it's an amazingly accurate dystopian conception. Alex is an interesting quasi-hero, and the accelerated divide between rich and poor is clearly shown.

A global climate disaster has already occurred as the story begins, horrific in its implications. The war between rich and poor, corporations and workers, is nicely iRemember, this book was first published in 1995.

The first third of the book is great fun, full of a compelling and frightening near-future London. Given this was written in 1994-1995, it's an amazingly accurate dystopian conception. Alex is an interesting quasi-hero, and the accelerated divide between rich and poor is clearly shown.

A global climate disaster has already occurred as the story begins, horrific in its implications. The war between rich and poor, corporations and workers, is nicely imagined. And the gene engineering and nano-bots are firmly founded in hard science.

However, after the first third of the book, the narrative shifts to a very confusing perspective of all new, mostly non-human characters. The cruelty here is depressing, and the plot wanders around and around.

The last third of the book or so, some plot direction is restored, but quickly deteriorates into a repetitive random walk around war zones, concluding in a 30 page yawn sequence, and ending the book with a big "who cares". Very sad.

Given this is one of McAuley's first books, much can be forgiven, and the hard science attempts and good beginning pull this up to three stars.

I suggest you read my "updates" below. There are some fine quotes, and one exposition is very fine.

-- Partial quote --

"Daphoene, the huntress of the moon, the triple goddess of air, earth and the secret waters of death....‘The Age of Reason was almost a fatal blow to the triple goddess, but in its ending is her new beginning. For the last century saw the deposition of the paternal God who was set on the throne of Zeus, which was once her throne. The Age of Theocracy in the West was already in decline when in our country Cromwell forcefully rejected the ceremonies that obscured the godhead from the common man. He couldn’t see that the Age of Reason, in which every man was entitled to read and interpret the scriptures, would bring about the death of the idea of God. The god of science and reason, Apollo, was raised up in His place, and at either side of Apollo were Pluto and Mercury. I worshipped Apollo and Mercury when I was young, but it is Pluto who is in the ascendant now. Pluto, the hoarder, god of the geezers and the babushkas, god of all the people who hide away in the ribbon arcologies and in virtuality, jealous of the young and denying death, for that would mean losing all they’ve accumulated."...more

I really liked this book when I first started it but there were a few things that I struggled with later on. Initially it came across as a less extreme form of cyberpunk than William Gibson's but then the description of the futuristic nanobotery became a little too complex. Some of these concepts were interesting but I got lost in the details. I realise that it's supposed to be like this to a certain extent but it was a little too much, like showing off.I was ok with the present tense narrationI really liked this book when I first started it but there were a few things that I struggled with later on. Initially it came across as a less extreme form of cyberpunk than William Gibson's but then the description of the futuristic nanobotery became a little too complex. Some of these concepts were interesting but I got lost in the details. I realise that it's supposed to be like this to a certain extent but it was a little too much, like showing off.I was ok with the present tense narration for the first section, that only followed one character (as far as I can remember), but then there was a strange section that pushed the narrative forward in time and the present tense didn't sit properly there. From then on in the novel there would be moments where the present tense worked fine followed by sections where it didn't quite work.I also felt, as the novel progressed more and more characters were introduced and I couldn't quite get to grips with what their motivations were, who's side they were on and why they were doing what they were doing. On top of that I found Alex's (the main protagonist) explanation that he was driven to act by some vague nanobot infection rather weak. So overall I felt there were some good ideas in there and interesting concepts and characters but it was all too dense leaving me feeling like there were some unnecessary parts but I wasn't sure which ones they were....more

By far, the best cyberpunk book I've ever read. It explores the deep implications of the technology of its world, as every good sci fi book should. The tone is dark and a tad noir, and every mystery reveals deeper forces at work.

The main character starts of creating drugs out of custom crafted viruses that deliver tailored psychoactive effects. As time passes, customized viruses are obsoleted by programmed nanobots that interact with the brain on a molecular level. The technology is so accessibBy far, the best cyberpunk book I've ever read. It explores the deep implications of the technology of its world, as every good sci fi book should. The tone is dark and a tad noir, and every mystery reveals deeper forces at work.

The main character starts of creating drugs out of custom crafted viruses that deliver tailored psychoactive effects. As time passes, customized viruses are obsoleted by programmed nanobots that interact with the brain on a molecular level. The technology is so accessible that script kiddies create rampant nanobot breeds, causing infected people to act out memes. A cult religion springs up, born of people infected by a particular strain of nanobots. A new species emerges from an enslaved genetically modified sub-race, freed by carefully crafted nanobots. They become the fairies of Fairyland, every bit as dark, enticing, and capricious as the fairies of folklore. The main character follows the rabbit hole deeper and deeper into the heart of their world in his quest to find the girl he is obsessed with. ...more

The dyspepsia world of Fairyland is vivid in its filth and brutality. The technology introduced makes for compelling mechanics, and they build upon and play off of one another.

Sound like a great (albeit, unpleasant) book? Well, it was for the first two thirds. The book was broken up into three independent stories. The switch from "book" one to two felt like it added a lot of depth to the world, and that the main character grew and changed a lot. By contrast, the switch from two to three felt frThe dyspepsia world of Fairyland is vivid in its filth and brutality. The technology introduced makes for compelling mechanics, and they build upon and play off of one another.

Sound like a great (albeit, unpleasant) book? Well, it was for the first two thirds. The book was broken up into three independent stories. The switch from "book" one to two felt like it added a lot of depth to the world, and that the main character grew and changed a lot. By contrast, the switch from two to three felt frustrating that things still weren't resolved, and the main character seemed pathetic to still be on this quest.

The pace of my reading slowed to such a comical crawl towards the end. It took me weeks to force myself through the last five pages. I'm stunned, and more than a little bit relieved that it's finally done with....more

Alex Sharkey lives by his wits as he develops drugs only just inside the law, drugs based on genetics. When he falls in with Milena, a girl who seems to know too much, they hatch a plan to liberate the genetically engineered 'dolls' that do so much manual labour in the early 21st century. This book follows the consequences of that fateful decision.

I must confess that I'm not really that fond of cyberpunk, so didn't hugely get into this book. It was that sort of tarnished chrome near-future stuffAlex Sharkey lives by his wits as he develops drugs only just inside the law, drugs based on genetics. When he falls in with Milena, a girl who seems to know too much, they hatch a plan to liberate the genetically engineered 'dolls' that do so much manual labour in the early 21st century. This book follows the consequences of that fateful decision.

I must confess that I'm not really that fond of cyberpunk, so didn't hugely get into this book. It was that sort of tarnished chrome near-future stuff (to start with, at least) that's not fully dystopic but well on its way there. And the first segment was set in London as well, so a society that I'm familiar with, and I was much more interested in the untold story of why the welfare state and NHS had collapsed than the dolls storyline, which didn't help my engagement with the story.

The three parts of the story take us progressively further forward in time, although all within a single lifetime, as Alex tries to come to terms with what he's done, and find Milena again, which is what drives much of the second and third parts of the book.

There's a lot of good imagery here and some very interesting ideas (I'm still not entirely sure if all the animals are actually dead or not, although I'm pretty sure it was heavily implied [yet another untold story that I would have liked to read more about]) but I wasn't hugely invested in Alex or any of the other viewpoint characters and, really wasn't sure where we were by the end of the story.

So not really my cup of tea, but in no way am I saying that this is a bad book, it's just one that I didn't enjoy....more

I’m not sure what to make of this novel. It is wonderfully evoked and challenging. I found myself unengaged. It is a cyber/biopunk novel set in a greatly unraveled Europe. What to make of these things?

The novel reads a bit like a conspiracy theory/mystery. A very smart drug maker is compelled into a string of violence by a hyper-brilliant young girl. She is a mastermind, and created herself, and seems bent on bending the future of the world to her creation. The man, Alex, spends the rest of theI’m not sure what to make of this novel. It is wonderfully evoked and challenging. I found myself unengaged. It is a cyber/biopunk novel set in a greatly unraveled Europe. What to make of these things?

The novel reads a bit like a conspiracy theory/mystery. A very smart drug maker is compelled into a string of violence by a hyper-brilliant young girl. She is a mastermind, and created herself, and seems bent on bending the future of the world to her creation. The man, Alex, spends the rest of the novel tracking her down. He is brought face to face with all manner of artificially created biological organisms that all seem to be evolving independently. The novel is dark and brooding. It was, admittedly, tough to read for me. In the end, though, I believe this is very well worth the effort, especially for those that are fans of scifi literature.

So in the near future, nanotechnology allows the manipulation of biology to create new forms of life. Humans naturally use them for their own purpose but the fairies become free, and they want a very different world.

Its a very interesting idea, and well told on some level. There is a complex story arc that combines the history of the fairies with the tale the author wants to tell. The fairies are definitely interesting and how they can fulfil the fairytale version of themselves is clever.

UnforSo in the near future, nanotechnology allows the manipulation of biology to create new forms of life. Humans naturally use them for their own purpose but the fairies become free, and they want a very different world.

Its a very interesting idea, and well told on some level. There is a complex story arc that combines the history of the fairies with the tale the author wants to tell. The fairies are definitely interesting and how they can fulfil the fairytale version of themselves is clever.

Unfortunately it's all a bit..disjointed. I had no sense of caring for the characters or the world. Things that turned out important in the story didn't seem important when introduced, and I never saw why they were in the story. It was more of a world building exercise than a proper narrative.

I struggled to finish the book and honesty the good stuff was done with by one third through. ...more

This was not an easy read.The protagonist, Alex Sharkey, is not that likeable a character. He is a bio-chemical hacker, a creator of future drugs delivered in virus form.

The future has blue dolls, fembots, lots of grit, dirt and disease.Well worth a read - Maybe my rating is a little harsh. I liked it more after I’d finished it, and I had some perspective on the full story. Honestly, at times it was a slog.

This was written in 1995, and now over 20 years later, some parts are pretty near the markThis was not an easy read.The protagonist, Alex Sharkey, is not that likeable a character. He is a bio-chemical hacker, a creator of future drugs delivered in virus form.

The future has blue dolls, fembots, lots of grit, dirt and disease.Well worth a read - Maybe my rating is a little harsh. I liked it more after I’d finished it, and I had some perspective on the full story. Honestly, at times it was a slog.

This was written in 1995, and now over 20 years later, some parts are pretty near the mark (migrant caravans of people, changing climate).A definite read for the genre....more

The ideas in this book are pretty amazing, of a future where genetically engineered "dolls" used as slaves acquire consciousness and become "fairies". Many of the themes have relevance to our modern culture, with connectivity with others through the internet having the highest value. McAuley preempts this theme with the existence of a "web", and how large sectors of the population have withdrawn from their real lives to reside within it.

A sprawling wonderful scary read. McAuley spins a deep web with really great characters and drags you into a weirdly recognizable future. There is a theme running through McAuleys books. Gaia, environment, AI, biology, Genentech, evolution. He us one smart, complicated author.It's a pleasure to read his book even if it is a frightening futurethat he looks into.

Stiff and crude writing with impersonal and distant characters; couldn't force myself to like any of them.

On the bright side, I enjoyed some of the science-y narrative (I'd say that was the most pleasant part, really). Nonetheless, it's not enough a justification to finish it up (I'm towards the end of Part I).

Gritty, dirty book that's absolutely stood the test of time. An unexpected and perfect ending. Really enjoyed how the high technology still retained those elements of the fae we're familiar with, subtly done.

I had it on a mix of audio/book and loved it. I badly want to see it made into a movie.

“I didn’t know this kind of shit was about to happen,’ Katrina hisses. ‘This fucker has suckered us in and sold us out. For the second time.’ Katrina lapses into this kind of tough guy dialogue when she’s stressed – she learned English from virtual shoot-’em-ups. Firelight flatters her face. She looks young and fierce and alert, a warrior-princess from the sagas in a black leather jacket, buckled biker boots and black leggings. All she lacks are mirrorshades.”
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